Summer, Please Be Kind: Confessions of a Work-at-Home Mom

It's almost the last day of school (or so my kids tell me every morning) and excitement is high about the freedom of summer. They are envisioning endless visits to the park, spontaneous runs for ice cream and hours on end with me jumping and playing in the pool. I'm seeing me frantic, running back and forth from my home office to their part of the house where they happily eat snacks, make messes and watch way too many shows on the computer, while waiting for me to find something for all of us to do.

Anyone else out there cash-poor for camps and worried about how to keep the kids happy while getting your own work done? Let me know I'm not alone in the comments below.

7 Comments

My own children aren't school-aged yet, so we don't do camps. Luckily I have daycare 3 days a week for the 4-year-old, and the baby still naps. I have tried to work at home with one or both of them awake, and it's very hard. I was hoping it would get better as they got older, but based on your post it sounds like it might not.

yes. I share your same predicament. It get a little dicey at times and then other times it's so smooth I wonder what's wrong.

this year's plan is to have the kids busy with chores (for allowance) and then free play while I work in the morning and then a trip to the pool in the afternoon.

we tried it last year and it went fairly well. I'm just trying not to feel the guilt from not forking out the cash for camps. at least they're not putting on the pressure to go...well, at least not this year, they're not!

I'm a poet and most of the writing I do is not on a deadline. Last summer, I worried a lot about how I would get any creative work done once my son was out of school - he's eight. We actually fell into a very nice rhythm of doing things together and spending time working on separate projects too. The trick was, I think, I lowered my expectations to zero - did not expect to get any writing done at all, so what I did get accomplished was that much sweeter.

I'm actually looking forward to school getting out this year. Good Luck, Jen.

My kids have been home for the last 10 years - we homeschool. It's not really a problem. or at least it wasn't once they were completely at home. The first two years of public school-getting summers-off were terrible. By the time they settled out into being able to entertain themselves and be well-behaved, it was time to send them back.
But the first two weeks - it was like having wild animals in the house. I have had an in-home office the entire time, and have used it to teach them responsibility, organization, math, and basic business (inventory, profit/loss, cost control,etc).

My kids take part in been to your house representing the carry on 10 years - we homeschool. It's not really a drawback. Or else by the side of smallest amount it wasn't when they were completely by the side of to your house. The at the outset two years of community school-getting summers-off were terrible. By the point in time they complete barred into being able to entertain themselves and take place well-behaved, it was point in time to send out them back.
But the at the outset two weeks - it was like having wild animals clothed in the igloo. I take part in had an in-home headquarters the total point in time, and take part in used it to teach them trustworthiness, organization, math, and important organization (inventory, profit/loss, cost control,etc).